Founder/Executive Director (she/hers)

Lisa Kollins began The Superhero Project as a part-time unpaid side hustle and is thrilled to see how it’s turned into a real job! She served as administrator of the Schubert Center for Child Studies and the Social Justice Institute, both at Case Western Reserve University, and was an Employment Associate at Youth Opportunities Unlimited, which supports pathways from poverty for teens. In addition to her nine years at Camp Sunrise, Lisa continues to volunteer locally and internationally. Lisa is an aunt to eight fantastic kids, ranging in age from 6-24. One of the most exciting Superhero Project moments so far was when the official Kraft Macaroni and Cheese Instagram account commented on one of our posts!

Creative Director (she/hers)

Taryn, movie aficionado and friend to all animals, is Creative Director of SHP by day and storyboard artist by night. Thanks to her BFA in Illustration from New Hampshire Institute of Art in 2013, she's been a children's book illustrator, graphic designer, caricature artist, and storyboarder. Her adventures have led her all over the US and she now lives in North Carolina. She's a proud Hufflepuff who likes Spider-Man, Hawaiian pizza, and a kickin' music playlist to get her imagination going.

Graphic Designer (she/hers)

Elizabeth is the founder of Gusto Designs, which for nearly 20 years has provided creative design solutions that are sometimes unexpected, but always appreciated. A graduate of Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania, Elizabeth earned her Bachelor of Arts with a concentration in Graphic Design and also minored in Marketing. In 2014, she was a recipient of the Morrie Sayer Founder's Award for Outsanding Volunteerism from Shoes and Clothes for Kids.

Data and Technology Director (he/him)

Jack Miller is currently an undergraduate at the University of Colorado Boulder. While volunteering for The Superhero Project, Jack designs, builds, and maintains a custom database solution for the superhero project, allowing for streamlined data collection, project management, and record keeping. In his free time, Jack enjoys rock climbing, being outdoors, playing video games, experimenting with electronics, and hanging with friends.

Special Projects Coordinator (she/hers)

Katie is a first year student at the George Washington University School of Law and currently resides in Washington, DC. Outside of school and working with SHP, Katie enjoys spending time with her cat Stella, baking, and visiting museums.

Creative Storywriter

Sarah Giles is an author, doodler, and experimenter-in-charge at the Big Fab Story Lab on YouTube. When she’s not writing, drawing, or filming, she loves visiting classes to share her best story-building tips and tricks with kids. In addition to working with SHP, Sarah works with Kids Comics Unite, a community of artists, writers, and publishers who love making comics and graphic novels for kids. Sarah lives in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains with her family and two feline writing partners, and her happy place is atop her paddle board on a quiet lake.

Creative Storywriter (she/hers)

Kai Grayson is a Black, queer screenwriter from Los Angeles who writes scripts that inspire and spark wonder in the minds of the newest generations. Her stories combine aspects of magic, imagination, and life lessons to entertain children all over the world. Most recently, Kai has written on PBS’ Work It Out Wombats, Netflix’s Creature Cases, and co-wrote Suzie Hicks Climate Chick. When she's not writing, Kai enjoys playing video games, crocheting, and hanging out with her dog, Waffle.

Program Assistant

Passionate about marketing for social change, Thomas Banks co-founded a club in high school which focused on amplifying student voices and encouraging students to be active members in their community. Thomas also had the pleasure of writing and directing a play titled, Because of You, I…, which centers around diversity, empathy & inclusion. Recently, Thomas graduated from Stetson University with a degree in marketing. In his free time, Thomas likes to write and produce music, play video games, and cuddle with his cat Mochi.

Program Assistant (they/them)

Gillian works as a housing justice community organizer in Cleveland, Ohio.  They graduated from Case Western Reserve University with a bachelor's degree in Political Science, and completed their master's degree in May 2022 in Pennsylvania State University’s Department of Geography. During the summer of 2022, Gillian rode their bike across the country with a group called Bike and Build, biking to raise awareness about the affordable housing crisis. They are a member of the Cleveland Catholic Worker Community and spend their free time biking on the Towpath Trail. 

Josh Thompson is the Vice President of Creative and Marketing at Oodle, a digital media company that does creative brand management, data communication, web and app designs, search engine optimization, and more. Previously, he was the Marketing Director at The Cure Starts Now, a national non-profit organization focused on finding the “homerun cure” that will end cancer. They fund research on pediatric brain cancer, one of the biggest bullies in the cancer world, with the expectation that treatments developed will be applicable for other kinds of cancer. Josh is our record-holder for artists and has designed more than 25 superhero posters. He and his wife live in northern Kentucky with his three kids. He is interested in nature and insect photography, and took tap dancing lessons as a child.

Alisa Feingold has 25 plus years of experience as a communications professional with Fortune 500 corporations. Most recently, she served as director of global and regional communications for the Avery Dennison Corporation. She also has experience in the fields of insurance, healthcare and non-profit operations. Alisa is the founder and principal of Fine Edge Communications, an agency focused on the power of strategic communications to help organizations define and achieve their goals. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, change management, internal and external communications, content development, and executive coaching. Alisa earned her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Pennsylvania. When not at work, Alisa enjoys being with family and friends and spending time outdoors.

Dr. Lisa Merlo is a licensed clinical psychologist. She has completed postdoctoral fellowships in clinical child/pediatric psychology and drug abuse epidemiology and prevention. She is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Florida College of Medicine, where she serves as the Director of Wellness Programs. Dr. Merlo is active in the education of medical students, residents, and other health profession students. She also serves as the Director of Research for the Professionals Resource Network, Inc. (the State monitoring program for healthcare professionals with potentially-impairing conditions).

Matt Minnich is a creative thinker. Over the years he has applied his creativity to technical support, teaching, illustration, graphic design, web graphics and code. He is currently employing all of his creative experience in the IT department of the Cleveland Institute of Art. He has been an active poster artist with The Superhero Project since 2019. Matt has lived in 8 of the United states east of the Mississippi and he spent 2 years in France as a missionary for his church in the early nineties. He and his wife  live in Ohio and have 2 adult sons.

Nikki (Charisse) Montgomery, MA, MEd, GPAC, is the Executive Director of Madvocator Educational and Healthcare Advocacy Training. Her experiences as an educational psychologist, a teacher, a patient advocate, and the parent of a child with complex healthcare and educational needs led her to create Madvocator. In addition to a graduate certificate in Patient Advocacy, for which her research was focused on increasing the capacity of parents of medically fragile children, Ms. Montgomery has a master’s degree in Educational Psychology with thesis research on critical thinking and engagement for parents of children with disabilities. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital and on the Global Patient and Family Advisory Board for The Beryl Institute. Nikki’s son Richie (a.k.a. Electric Force) was one of the very first recipients of a Superhero Project poster!

Mike Thomas is a Creative Director with 22 years of experience in publishing, brand, and licensing design. After graduating with a degree in Communications Design from Pratt Institute, Mike joined Marvel Entertainment in 1992, as an Art Director. He was soon promoted to Creative Director, in charge of the creative direction for brands like Spider-Man and the X-Men for all licensing and promotions categories. With his partner, Chris Dickey, he founded Creative Giant in 2001. Since then he has worked with a wide array of clients, projects and products. Mike is also a go-to artist for The Superhero Project, designing multiple posters and other materials. Mike lives in Massachusetts with his family, Christine and Nathan. He is a dog-person who somehow owns two cats.

Bobby got his big break by designing characters for Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. He has since won a number of awards for his creative work, including an Emmy for co-creating the animated tv show Niko and the Sword of Light. He co-founded Imaginism Studio, LightBox Expo and Schoolism.com, and he is a co-owner of Magma Studio. Bobby and his Lightbox Expo friends have hosted two Draw with the Artist virtual events for Superhero Project families so far, and he is instrumental in connecting us strategically with folks in the animation world. Watch Bobby interview Lisa about The Superhero Project on YouTube!

Regina is an art director and book designer. She’s queer and tisay (half Filipino and half white) and 100% constructed from witchcraft, yarn, sewing needles, and plants. She is a full time art director at Del Rey books, an imprint of Penguin Random House that publishes science fiction, fantasy, and horror. She’s a friend to imaginary creatures everywhere. If Regina were a superhero, her power would be shapeshifting! She is a regular contributor to The Superhero Project. @reginaflath

Ken has been a professional artist for more than 20 years and has been designing posters for The Superhero Project since 2018. He discovered his passion for art in a high school drawing class, thanks to a very inspirational teacher. Ken graduated from The University of Central Florida in 2001 with an art degree in illustration. He currently works as a caricature artist at Sea World in Orlando, Florida, and spends his spare time attending car shows to draw the classics. His collection of cars can be found on Instagram @autotooned_art. Ken’s colleagues and artist friends take great pleasure in creating annual caricatures of Ken and his eyebrows.  

An award-winning designer, art director, and overall brand builder, Meredith has spent the majority of her career helping companies tell their stories in meaningful ways. As a result, she has the unique ability to work in many styles, from fun and funky to corporate and classic. Her early experience started in New York City with internships at Seventeen Magazine and Betsey Johnson, followed by creative roles at agencies in New Hampshire and Boston. Before merging with Cookson Communications in 2016, she owned her own creative design agency, MSNCreate. Along the way, she worked on creative for household names like Charmin, Naked Juice, Jack-in-the-Box, MegaFood and Petco. Meredith is a long-time volunteer artist with The Superhero Project.